


discontinued, not pog - The Unfinished Symphony: A Retelling of the Dream SMP War - Kingdom AU

by taylortazeverse



Category: Dream SMP - Fandom, Minecraft (Video Game), Video Blogging RPF
Genre: Abandoned Work - Unfinished and Discontinued
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-11-23
Updated: 2021-01-30
Packaged: 2021-03-10 04:22:41
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 23
Words: 16,876
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27677342
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/taylortazeverse/pseuds/taylortazeverse
Summary: L'manburg. A longstanding nobel nation, and neighboring kingdom to Flordania. Or, is it...?All of a sudden when war is declared on L'Manburg, it's up to King Wilbur, and his cabinet to diffuse past issues between L'manburg and Flordania.-This fanfic is based on the events of the Dream SMP War. Our AU is a Kingdoms AU, with a D&D-esque feel to it. The prologue and the actual story are written sort of like different stories, so our character list will have both. Enjoy :)-Co-written with a friend of mine!
Comments: 2
Kudos: 23





	1. Intro Blurb

**Author's Note:**

> Updates will be every weekend ish, it might fluctuate each week!

Hello to the wonderful world of a03.

Yes I know, this the first chapter, an introduction and blurb, not actual content. I know it sucks, but we're struggling on what to title this okay??

This is a collaboration, written by my wonderful friend @Loser_Geek_Weebever and myself @TazeArtStudios! (Geek doesn't actually have an a03, instead we are using her Wattpad to cross post it on there).

There will also be a comic, drawn by yours truly... putting myself through hell as usual, oh boy. The fic will be updated and way ahead of the comic, because there is no way I'm producing half assed work. I am currently working on quick refs for everyones looks! You can either see what we have imagined everyone looks like in our au, or leave it up to your own interpretation!

We are most active on Instagram, you can follow Geek @Loser_Geek_Weebever and myself @TazeArtStudios

I also stream on Twitch! I play games (mostly minecraft), and stream art (or am going too...) Feel free to check me out at https://www.twitch.tv/tazeverse  
You can also check out my youtube channel, by searching up "Tazeverse" in the youtube search bar!

If you wanna chat with us, the authors, feel free to message us on instagram! If you make any fanart, or drabbles, etc... of our au, we'd love to see them!!!

When we finally decide on a title, we'll upload the first chapter. Hopefully that might be in the middle of this week :)


	2. Character Info!

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> An intro to the AU, and some character blurbs!!! Most of the characters haven't appeared yet, but will, when we get to that. We're writing stuff as we go, ya know.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> so excited we can finally start sharing this with you! its also cross posted on wattpad under the same title, so you can also read it there :)

INTRODUCTION/SUMMARY

This fanfic is based on the events of the Dream SMP War. Our AU is a Kingdoms AU, with a D&D-esque feel to it. The prologue and the actual story are written sort of like different stories, so our character list will have both. Enjoy :)

CHARACTER INFO CHAP

You may notice that there are some DND elements to the characters, this is all in good fun, and to add a bit more of a fantasy edge to our AU! Please remember that how certain characters are portrayed are not to be how we perceive them as real people, but how their characters are within the world of the SMP. Even then, obviously we’ve taken some creative liberties as well. We hope you like it :)!

Also note: Everyone’s ages are still kinda a work in progress, but for future reference regarding Fundy; In this AU he’s about as old as Tommy and Tubbo, but aged mentally younger. We’ve decided to call it a forest spirit thing. Haha we’re so smart.

TOMMY- HALFLING - THIEF  
Youngest son of Phil, and younger brother of Techno and Wilbur. Tommy, an atypical halfling, being 6’3. He may be tall, but he's not mature, at all. Everyone's favorite mischievous, chaotic, little shit, causing trouble wherever he's at. He is called small. Best Friends with Tubbo, they balance eachother out.

TUBBO- HALF-ELF BARD  
Flordania had destroyed the small kingdom Tubbo had lived in. He doesn’t remember much about it. Phil and family just kinda found him on the side of the road and adopted him. Tommy and Tubbo are now besties, we stan the friendship. Bees, Tubbo likes bees, and singing. Singing to the bees. Bee boy.

WILBUR- HUMAN - SORCERER(ALCHEMIST) & BARD  
Second oldest son of Phil, and brother of Techno and Tommy. He serves as the current king of L’Manburg. He’s the brains of the family, always cooking up something in his room, that or strumming a song on his guitar. A powerful and righteous leader, always putting the people first.

TECHNO- HALF-ORC - FIGHTER  
Oldest son of Phil, and brother to Wilbur and Tommy. He was technically the oldest, meaning he should be king, but he stepped down. Techno isn’t a huge fan of the government, he thinks Wilbur makes a better leader. He prefers being off in the fields of battle, or a good sparring match. Well known soldier.

FUNDY THE FURRY- FOX (NATURE) SPIRIT - SORCERER  
Son of Wilbur. Fundy is a nature spirit whose form is that of a fox. He doesn’t know much of his mother, Wilbur won't speak of her. Wilbur has taught him all of what he knows about potions and such.

PHILZA MINECRAFT OLD MAN- HALF HARPY - CLERIC  
Father of Techno, WIlbur, and Tommy. Caretaker of Tubbo.

NIKI/NIACHU- WOOD ELF - DRUID  
L’Manburgs “healer,” A talented druid and baker! She’s super sweet, and gets along with everyone. She can always be found either at her bakery, or around the royal family.

SCHLATT- HALF HUMAN (HALF DEMON) - ROUGE  
A powerful and smart man with a thirst for power.

QUACKITY- HUMAN - RANGER  
Right hand to Schlatt.

BADBOYHALO- TIEFLING - CLERIC  
Resident of Flordania. Friends with Skeppy, Antfrost, and Sam. Not fond of swearing.

SKEPPY- GNOME - ROUGE  
Resident of Flordania. Just a trolling midget. Friends with Bad, Antfrost, and Sam.

ANTFROST- DWARF - BARD  
Resident of Flordania. Cat? Friends with Bad, Skeppy, and Sam.

AWESAMDUDE- HUMAN - WARLOCK  
Resident of Flordania. That guy with the creeper mask. Friends with Bad, Skeppy, and Antfrost.

DREAM- HIGH ELF - PALADIN  
Dream is the current king of Flordania, his younger sister Drista, being next in line. The royalty in Flordania is known for their anonymity, therefore masks are a big deal. Dream made his mask as a joke, but thinks it fits well anyway. He’s known for wiping out entire army’s, and feared by many. He isn’t someone to be taken lightly, or messed with for that matter.

GEORGE- HUMAN - WIZARD  
Dream’s right hand, and personal bodyguard (AKA “The King’s Blade”). Good friends with Dream and Sapnap.

SAPNAP- DWARF - FIGHTER  
One of the top knights in Flordania. Good friends with Dream and George. Also friends with Karl.

KARL- HUMAN - RANGER  
Best friends with Sapnap, part of the Flordania army.

DRISTA- HIGH ELF - MONK  
Princess of Flordania, younger sister of Dream. A bit of a rebel.

ERET- HIGH ELF - WIZARD  
A bisexual icon. Known wizard in L’Manburg.

PUNZ- WOOD ELF, RANGER  
Resident of Flordania. Part of the Flordanian army.

TAZEVERSE- DROW (DARK ELF) - DRUID  
A self insert. Not that important, just a background character.

MERE- HALF-ELF, THIEF  
A self insert. Not that important, just a background character.

PRE-L’MANBURG 

WILLIAM- Wilbur’s past life. Runs a drug cartel and starts L’Manburg. 

TOMATHY- Tommy’s past life. William’s second in command.

TOBIAS- Tubbo’s past life. Tomathy’s close comrade. 

PHILLIP- Phil’s past life. The father of William, Tiberius, and Tomathy. Leaves for war early on. 

TIBERIUS- Techno’s past life. Leaves for war early on. 

KING CLAYTON- Dream’s past life. King of Flordania. Fights to remove L’Manburg.


	3. Prologue

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> And so it begins...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *The entire AU isn't written like this, this is just for the first chapter. Geek wrote this entire one. Lowkey I love it, but I can't read through the entire thing without wHEEZING.

William carefully mixed the potions, glancing up at the sound of footsteps by the door of the carriage. His eyes narrowed. Slowly, he drew his sword and advanced towards the door.  
“William? It’s me, Tomathy!”  
William sighed and put away the sword, opening the door.  
“Don’t skulk about, you nearly got yourself killed by my hand.”  
Tomathy laughed. “You speak as though I could not parry thy sword.”  
William just nodded, distractedly. “The final batch of our brew are nearly finished.”  
Tomathy clapped once, pleased. “Good. We shall be ready to send them to our colleagues shortly, then.”  
A knock resounded on the door.  
“Speak of the devil himself. That should be Tobias.”  
“It is indeed. Open the door posthaste, for I bring news.” Tobias called from beyond the door.  
Tomathy quickly gave Tobias entry. “Well? You say you bring news, them out with it.”  
Tobias nodded. “I was getting to that. Phillip has officially departed, escorting Tiberius out to war. We should be unperturbed in our… questionable efforts.”  
“Excellent. Let us depart, then. Our potions are finished.” William stood and gathered their supplies in a bag, and exited the carriage with his brethren.  
They walked peacefully until reaching the gate of their nation in progress.  
There stood Clayton, the King of Flordania.  
William kept his resolve. “Clayton. How can we help you this fine afternoon?”  
Clayton’s mask betrayed no emotion, but the anger that radiated from him was palpable. “What any respectable leader would do. You cannot secede from my nation.”  
“And why would that be?” William clutched the bag containing the drugs.  
“Because not only are you illogically trying to secede, you are also engaging in illegal activity in this carriage.”  
“I don’t see how it concerns you.”  
“How can it not?”  
“Sir Clayton-“  
“King Clayton.”  
“King Clayton, independence or death. If we have no revolution, then we want nothing. We would rather die than give in and join your Kingdom.”  
“To war, then? Are you willing to bleed for your foolish little potions?”  
“Clearly you do not think they are foolish. And what part of death does not register for you?”  
“So be it. But hear this- I demand white flags by tomorrow, or your so willing death will come to pass.”


	4. Chapter 1

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Beginning of the Present....... dun dun dunnnnnnn

The large hallways remained empty and still, the slightest noises echoing throughout the entirety of the castle. Tommy ran down the halls of the palace, followed closely by Tubbo. “Wilbur!” Tommy yelled down the hallway. There was no response except for the loud reverb of his own voice. “Wilbur!” He tried again, and Tubbo echoed his call. They just reached the room when Wilbur popped his head out. “Tommy, what?”  
Tommy took a large inhale before explaining. “Tubbo was outside when he ran into Sapnap, who said that Dream wanted to speak with you.” Wilbur was still only half-listening, eyes flicking back towards his room.  
“Why?”  
This time Tommy started in confusion. “What?”  
“Why? Why does Dream want to speak with me?”   
Tommy exasperatedly ran a hand through his hair. “I dunno, do I? Tubbo told me.”  
“And I dunno either, that’s just what he said. What Sapnap said.” Tubbo chimed in.   
“Well, is this good news? Is this…” Wilbur trailed off.   
After a moment of awkward silence, Tommy spoke up, “Dunno, but I reckon you should figure it out, huh? Do you think we should ask Phil?”   
“Tommy, why do you insist on calling our dad by his first name?”   
“I dunno, why are you a bard?”  
“What’s wrong with that? And why are you changing the subject?”  
“Well, it’s weird, innit?”  
“Actually, we’re both bards,” Tubbo added.   
“Shut up Tubbo.” Tommy retaliated.   
“I’m only half a bard anyway.” Wilbur pointed out, finally walking out of his room completely.  
“Well, that’s even worse, innit? I mean being a bard is bad enough, but being half of one? Pick a side, man. God.” Tommy complained.   
“Is this really a conversation we should be having anyway?”  
“Fair point, Wil. You’re right. Focusing. Dream wants to talk, and in my opinion, it isn’t good.”  
“How do you know?”  
“Well, it just seems a bit dodgy, yeah? I mean why’d he send Sapnap, of all people instead of coming himself, first of all. Plus he just ‘wants to speak with you’? Don’t you find that a bit weird? Whatever it is, it isn’t good.”  
“You don’t know that, Tommy.”  
“I think I know, and that’s good enough. I’m always right.”  
“Sure you are. Well, I’m still going to go.”  
“Yeah, I guess you have to…. but you might want to bring some guards, you know, backup.”  
“Well, I’m not taking you.”  
“That’s not what I- well, now I’m offended. You’ve hurt me.”  
“Good. Listen, I want to finish this potion. I’ll tell you when I’m leaving, okay?”  
“Okay. See you later, Wil. Come on, Tubbo.” Tommy turned away, returning up the hallway they came from. Tommy looked at Tubbo.   
“I am right though. Don’t you think that’s weird?”  
“No, I think you’re totally right, that is weird. Not much we can do about it though.”  
“True, true. Well, I better get back to my studies. You can get back to… whatever it is you were doing.”  
“Catching beeeees.”  
“...Okay Tubbo. See you.”  
“Bye.”  
Tommy went back to his school lessons with his private tutor in the library. He looked out the castle window, glancing into the distance, where a small part of Flordania can be seen.   
“I wonder what Dream’s up to…” he mused. Then he returned to his work.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> bazinga
> 
> sorry yall but no new chapter till next week :) 
> 
> we spoiled yall with 3 today aight.
> 
> feel free to leave comments!


	5. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> holy shit yall just finished watching tommy's stream and damn...  
> my brain is still processing everything that happened.
> 
> we bring to you ch2 loggers

Wilbur finished the last of his potions, leaving behind a little smoke and residue, ‘I’ll clean that up later’ he thought, and shoved the final one in his bag. He started to head down the long hallway. On his way out he stopped in Tommy’s room to let him know that he was heading out. As he was about to leave through the towering castle doors, he saw a flash of orange in his peripheral vision,  
“Hey, uh- Dad, where are you going? ...And why do you have one of those with you?”  
Wilbur smiled softly, looking back at his son,  
“It’s nothing to worry about Fundy, I just have some important business to attend to, ya know, king stuff…” he drifted off.  
Fundy stared back at Wilbur with concern,  
“You’re meeting with Dream? Why…”  
Wilbur turned in shock. “How did you..”  
“Dad, part fox remember?” He says pointing at his ears, bright orange, which did stand out quite a bit.  
“Just, be careful… alright?”  
Wilbur nodded and proceeded through the massive spruce doors.

As he walked down the elongated path towards the palace gates, a gentle wind ruffled his hair. He smiled, trying to ignore the anxiety gnawing at his core. He reached the gates, motioned the guards to let him out, and continued along the path, not noticing Fundy in the distance, as he watched on worriedly from a window.

As he passed through the gates, his anxiety continued to grow, becoming almost unbearable as many thoughts and possibilities swirled around in his consciousness. He passed by the Bakery, owned by Niki, a kind druid, and a wonderful cook. He continued moving along, staring at the various houses that made up L’Manbergs residents, as he mentally noted whose house belonged to who, to keep his mind off his impending anxiety. As he reached the end of L’Manberg territory, he exited the expansive blackstone walls which surrounded the country. He passed one last home, in a small space of neutral territory. Wilbur then proceeded to sit down, and wait on a nearby tree stump.

Wilbur, lost in his thoughts, jumped when someone called for him.  
“Soot.”  
He looked up to the tall and slender figure, mask obscuring face.  
“Dream. What is it that you wanted to talk about so badly?” Wilbur stood up, eye to eye with the elf.   
“Wilbur, I was going through some archives this morning, and I found something… interesting.”  
Wilbur eyed Dream. “Interesting how?”  
Dream pulled out his sword, and casually leaned on it. “Interesting as in… unusual and informative. About L’Manburg, actually.”  
Wilbur shifted uneasily. “What about L’Manburg could be deemed interesting? We're a kingdom built like any other, Dream.”  
Wilbur could just see Dream smiling under his mask. “Is that what you think?”  
An uncomfortable laugh escaped Wil, showing his uneasiness.  
“Yes? Is that not correct, Dream?”  
Dream let out a much more confident laugh. “Apparently… no, It’s not.”  
Dream reached into his bag, pulling out some old books. “Do you know what these are, Wilbur?”  
“They look like… tomes? I don’t see how this is relevant.”  
“Oh, they’re very relevant. Did you know that L’manburg is actually not a legitimate kingdom?”  
“What do you mean, we’re not legitimate? We’re a kingdom just like yours, Dream.”  
The elf smiled.  
“Heh, you might want to have a look at these.”  
Dream tossed the books at Wilbur.  
Wilbur flipped through the pages, growing more and more frantic. A bead of sweat trickled down his brow. “H- how do you… where did you find these? What does this mean?”   
Dream smiled. “I told you, it’s our history. Your nation illegally seceded to run a drug cartel. We’ve been coexisting because the files were lost, but they've been found. And we demand restitution.”  
Wilbur continued to laugh uncomfortably. “R- restitution? For what? We’ve been at peace for all these years, Dream! Why- why are you picking a fight now?”  
“Because these facts have come to light, Wilbur. This changes things.”  
“No, it doesn’t!” Wilbur protested, but Dream said nothing.  
“Fine, then just… raise trading prices or add tariffs or something. Why are you trying to start a War?” Wilbur admonished.  
Dream sighed. “I’m not trying to start a war, Wilbur.”  
A hysterical laugh poured out of Wilbur. “Then what is it you’re trying to do? Because it seems to me like you’re trying to get us all killed!”  
Dream frowned. “You seem to be laughing a lot, Wilbur. Do you think this is a joke?”  
“I- I can’t- you can’t do this, Dream! What gave you the idea to try and start a war?”  
“It’s not war, Wilbur. We’re just settling our differences.”  
“What differences?!?! What have we ever done to hurt you, Dream??”  
“Well, not you specifically, Wilbur. But your nation, which you inherited. That’s how ruling works, Wilbur. You have to take care of the mistakes your forefathers made.”  
“You- you’re making a mistake.”  
Wilbur and Dream stood there, the tension in the air thick enough to cover Dream’s ego.  
“Am I, Wilbur?”  
“I don’t know what compelled you to do this, but I’m not going to fight you over something so petty, Dream.”  
“Just wait. You may have to.” Dream turned to leave, but Wilbur called after him.  
“What does that mean?”  
“It means you’d better watch your back from now on.” Dream replied, still facing away.  
“I just- I don’t understand why you’re doing this!”  
Dream ignored him and continued to walk away, leaving him with one haunting sentence:  
“Maybe you should ask Tommy.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> uH oH tis the child......
> 
> fun times fun times  
> instagram @tazeartstudios


	6. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> fundy is adorable and wholesome :)
> 
> and uh.. uh oh....

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> man this week has just been,  
> one hell of a week.
> 
> ive been so dead that 4/5 days i went to school in sweats and a hoodie rather than my normal jeans, combat boots, and nice shirt sbsjbsjsb. i just wanna sleep man.
> 
> Anyway finals, midterms, exams n shit are coming up. dont worry about updates though, still every friday. we have 11 full chapters (not including the prologue) already written. POG
> 
> But please be mindful of fanfic writers, we are people too and we have shit going on. We are trying our best and we appreciate everyone who sticks around and waits :)!
> 
> me and mere are fuckin dead.
> 
> also check out the tazeverse smp https://www.twitch.tv/tazeverse  
> ill probably be live later today around 5-6ish EST give or take. gonna be building and making a giant christmas tree 👀

Wilbur sat in the field, shocked, ‘Damn that cocky bastard.’ Unable to move. Clouds began to darken the sky, along with the setting sun. It was almost pitch black, and soon it began to rain very hard, yet Wilbur did not move from the tree. So many thoughts filled his mind, especially what Dream had said, to ask Tommy… what did that mean? Despite all of this, he remained motionless, until a wet orange blob raced towards him.

Fundy sped towards his dad as fast as he could go.

“Dad! What happened?” Fundy cried.

Wilbur only moved his eyes to meet his son’s. “Fundy…” he said quietly.

Fundy desperately patted him down. “Are you wounded? Did he attack you?”

Wilbur slowly shook his head. “I need to find Tommy. Can you do that, Fundy? Can you get him for me?”

Fundy hesitated. “I’d rather bring you to him. You’ve got to get out of this weather.”

Wilbur did not respond.

With a worried whimper, Fundy helped him up, Wilbur couldn’t even carry himself, leaving Fundy to do all the work as they began making their way back to the palace.

Tommy looked up from his card game with Tubbo when a knock resounded on the large palace doors. 

“Who could that be? It’s past 9, it's unsafe.” Tommy joked.

“Maybe it’s Fundy? I think he went out earlier.” Tubbo contributed

As they struggled to open the doors, Fundy ran in, completely soaked, holding a just as drenched and lifeless Wilbur. 

Tommy ran over, immediate concern taking over his joking tone. “What happened? Is he hurt?”   
Fundy shook his head. “I’m not sure. I think Dream did this.”

“That bastard…” Tommy growled, eyes looking at a faraway point.

“He’s in deep shock, I think. We should lay him somewhere warm.” Tubbo took charge, suddenly serious. 

Fundy nodded and helped Tubbo get Wilbur to a fireplace. The boys looked at Wilbur, now passed out on a chair by the fire.

“He should be fine now.” Tubbo said, pulling a blanket on him.

“For real, Fundy. Tell us what happened to Wilbur.” Tommy said firmly. 

Fundy looked down. “I really don’t know. He uh- he was holding these books, though.”

Tommy perked up. “Let me see.”

Tommy’s breath quickened. Tubbo read over Tommy’s shoulder, eyes widening.

Fundy’s ears flattened in fear. “What is it? Let me see!”

Tommy only shook his head, quietly putting the book in his pocket, before standing up.

“Tommy-” Fundy started, but Tubbo cut him off.

“Hey, uh, Fundy, you should really get to bed. It’s late.”

“But-” 

“You really should, Fundy. We can take care of this.” Tommy said quietly as he broke eye contact with the fox spirit.

Fundy stared at Tommy, then turned and followed Tubbo to his room.

Tommy sat down next to Wilbur. “I’m sorry, Wil. This might be my fault. You remember those family heirlooms? The discs? Dream and I… we fought over them, Wil. And I think it made him mad, and then he  _ conveniently _ found those books. It’s just-” He ran a hand through his hair.

“It was kind of a joke, but I think I might’ve pissed him off a bit too much.” He looked back at Wilbur. “I’m sorry, man.”

He stayed next to Wilbur for another minute, then got up to make a call.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> stay tuned, chap 4 will be out next friday.


	7. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> uh oh tommy did an oopsie
> 
> discs
> 
> uh oh

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> wanna watch me and my friends be total idiots? follow me on twitch. https://www.twitch.tv/Tazeverse

Wilbur woke, dazed, too hot. He struggled to sit up until a cool rag was pressed against his forehead. Niki, smiling softly, was kneeling next to Wilbur.   
“Niki… wh-”  
She cut him off gently. “Tommy and everyone have taken care of it. You can rest.”  
Wilbur only struggled harder to sit up. “Wilbur!” She scolded, pushing him back down.   
“I- I need to see Tommy.” Wilbur looked around with wild eyes.   
“But you need to rest…” Wilbur’s gaze locked with hers, intent, intense. “I need to see him.”  
Niki looked uncomfortable but nodded. “Okay. Stay right here, Will.”  
Wilbur relaxed and collapsed on the chair. It only took Tommy a few minutes to rush in, followed closely by Tubbo. “Wilbur! You alright, big man?” He cried. Tubbo followed right on his heels. “You got a fever from sitting in that rain. It was really stupid of you.”  
Wilbur nodded tiredly, dragging a hand down his face. “Is Fundy upset?”  
They all exchanged glances. Finally, Niki spoke up. “Yeah, a little bit. He was really worried about you; he took you home, you know.” Wilbur sighed. “Yeah, it’s kinda fuzzy but I remember.”  
Tommy glanced at Tubbo. “So… do you remember what Dream told you?” He asked tentatively.   
Wilbur’s expression sagged. His face whitened. “Y-yeah.” He looked up tiredly at his brother. “I assume you’ve seen it, as the books are not in my pocket.”  
Tommy scratched the back of his neck. “Ah- yeah. I uh… yeah.”  
Wilbur sighed again. “Well, there was no hiding it. Actually, Tommy, I meant to show you anyway because Dream said something weird.”  
“Something… weird?”  
“About you, actually.”  
Tommy froze.  
“A- About me? Why would Dream say something about me?” Tommy laughed, looking away.  
Wilbur eyed Tommy. “He said… to ask you about why he’s attacking us, or something.”  
Tommy laughed, clearly very uncomfortable. Tubbo jumped in to try and save him. “Uh- why would he say that? That’s odd.”  
“Uh-huh, very odd, Tubbo. Don’t you think that’s weird, Tommy?”  
“I- uh-”  
“Tommy.” Wilbur stared into his eyes. “What did you do?”  
“I- I didn’t… okay.” Tommy struggled to speak for a moment.   
“You know those, uh, family heirlooms? My discs?”  
“Yeah, what about them? They’re really not that important, they were just a gift from Dad, right?”  
“They matter to me, okay? Anyway, he, uh, kinda… stole them? And I stole them back? And a bunch of other stuff happened but the point is we kind of hate each other a little bit and uh then he found the books and threatened me with them and uh he said… that if we don’t rejoin his kingdom because we ‘belong to him’ then he’d… kill us.”  
“Also I knew. I uh, I may have helped him a little bit.” Tubbo added in, a little guiltily.   
Wilbur put his face in his hands.  
“...Wil?”   
“Tommy.”  
“I’m really sorry, Wil, but I didn’t really have a- a uh, choice.”  
“Tommy.”  
“You really… I’m not sure if you’re mad but we can fix it, we don’t have to… rejoin, or…”  
“Tommy. You had an unofficial battle over… heirlooms with the leader of our only enemy kingdom. And you thought this was a good idea.”  
“I mean, I didn’t think it was a good idea, but I had to do something, didn’t I?”  
Wilbur exploded. “No, Tommy. You didn’t. You could’ve asked politely, or gotten politics involved, or just not cared because they’re discs, Tommy. They’re objects, and you basically started a war over them? What made you think this was a good idea? What made you think this was something you can do?”  
“I just- we never see Phil anymore, and they’re kinda important to me-”  
“Just stop, Tommy. Just stop.”  
“Wil, I-”  
“I can’t believe you’ve done this. You really, you’ve fucked us, tommy. You’ve started a war.”  
“Wh- no I haven’t!”  
“It’s going to happen, Tommy. Because of you.”  
“Wil- I’m sorry- I just wanted to-”  
“We’re done here.” Wilbur stood, and walked away, wobbling slightly.  
Niki quickly followed him. “Wilbur, you should rest-”  
“I can rest in my room.” He brushed her off and left everyone standing, shocked.  
Tubbo looked at Tommy. “Tommy, what did we do?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> uh oh
> 
> next chap will be out on christmas poggers. maybe i can talk mere into uploading more than one because holiday 👀


	8. Chapter 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> uh oh spoooky wilbur uh oh

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> MERRY CHRISTMAS AND HAPPY HOLIDAYS!! 
> 
> DOUBLE UPLOAD FOR YA'LL <3

Wilbur walked down the hallway, slow and swaying. He repeatedly pushed himself off of walls, knocking paintings off, hearing the splintering of frames but not caring. His vision was fuzzy, he was on the verge of blacking out. The chills and loss of sight weren’t stopping him from getting to his room, though. He finally stumbled in the door, shutting it and haphazardly flopping onto his bed. He could still smell the fumes from his last alchemic experiment, and it was clouding his mind. He could almost see a red haze, like smoke, surrounding him. Suddenly, Wilbur found it hard to breathe. He began to cough, struggling to breathe against the smoke filling his room. It seared his lungs, choking him, making him unable to call for help. He gasped on the floor, unsure when he had gotten there. His eyes were wide but only saw the smoke, twisting into faces smiling grotesquely.

_ “Do it.” _

“What?” Wilbur looked around for where the voice came from, but the smoke shifted constantly, faces temporary. 

_ “You know you want to.” _

“Do what?”

_ “Don’t lie to yourself.” _

“I- I don’t know what you’re talking about-”

_ “War is impending. War is necessary.” _

“Wh- why is it- why is it necessary? I don’t want-”

_ “Don’t lie to yourself.” _

“Stop saying that, I’m not!”

_ “Wilbur.” _

“What do you want?!?”

_ “Wilbur.” _

“Leave me alone!”

“Wilbur!”

  
Wilbur awoke from whatever nightmare he was having on the floor, curled up in a ball, covered in a cold sweat. A tear or two rolled down his cheeks. Niki was on the ground next to him, desperately trying to wake him up. “Wilbur!”

Wilbur coughed and rolled over to his side. “N-” He coughed again. “Niki?”

“Wilbur, what happened to you? Are you okay? You were struggling to breathe but everything was fine, and then you started talking to nothing like you were having hallucinations and-”

“You- you didn’t see it?” Wilbur was shaking, confused, afraid. “The smoke?”

“The- the what?”

“The smoke, it- it was everywhere, it was… filling the room, Niki, it was choking me!”

“...Wilbur, there was no smoke…”   
“But- but it was everywhere, I saw it!”   
“Wilbur, I really think you should go to bed.”   
“Niki, please, it was really there, I saw it-”   
“Wilbur.” She took his hand. “I know you’re scared and you’re sick right now. I’ll investigate the smoke, but I need you to sleep for me. Okay?”

“I- Niki, you believe me don’t you? You don’t think I’m crazy?”   
“No, Wilbur. I do think you need rest though. We can figure it out when you’re better. I promise.”

“...Okay. Goodnight, Niki.”

“Goodnight, Wilbur.” Niki quietly left the room and carefully shut the door, only to run into a very concerned Fundy. 

“Niki..?” He asked, trembling.

“Oh, Fundy… I-” She glanced back at Wilbur’s room. “Let’s talk in the main hall, okay?”

“...Okay.”

She led Wilbur’s son away from his father’s room, where he had dropped into a dark world unimaginable.


	9. Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Second upload, see ya next week!

_ “They don’t care about you, you know.” _

“I don’t know. They do. They care about me. They care for me.”

_ “They don’t care. They’re doing their jobs, but they think about how the war is coming. Not you. What are you going to do? How can you win? You’re outnumbered.” _

“We can do it. We can just reason with Dream.”

_ “This is Tommy’s fault.” _

“He’s just a kid.”

_ “Children are dangerous. Unpredictable. A waste of resources. They are easily turned.” _

“Tommy won’t turn, he basically started the thing.”

_ “It’s his fault.” _

“He didn’t know. He just misses our dad. He’s been gone for a while. Longer than Techno.”

_ “You’re nothing without the King’s Blade. There’s no hope.” _

“The Blade isn’t supposed to be family, anyway. It’s better that my personal guard isn’t family.”

_ “He’s more than a guard. He’s your entire army.” _

“I know that almost the entire force that got shipped out is dead, and he’s holding his own, but he’s the only good one we sent. We needed the others here. And now we have them, for this.”

_ “It’s not enough.” _

“We’ll make it enough.”

_ “You’ll kill them all.” _

“I won't.”

_ “You’ll be responsible. And you’ll lose.” _

“I won’t!”

_ “You will. And you’ll regret it.” _

“I  _ won’t lose.” _

_ “You’re right.” _

“I am?”

_ “You’ll win. But you’ll be the only one.” _

“No, people will be alive, L’manburg will still be alive!”

_ “...” _

“...”

_ “Believe what you want. We’ll see who’s right.” _

“What does that mean?”

_ “See you soon, King Wilbur.” _

“What does that mean?  _ What does that mean? Please, what does that mean?” _

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> sorry its so short :(


	10. Chapter 7

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> whats wrong with dirty crime boy

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> HAPPY NEW YEAR!! We are spoiling you all yet again with a double upload. Next week will resume to one chapter a week.

Niki, Fundy, Tommy, and Tubbo all sat around in the main hall, exhausted and cold.

Niki began to panic.

“What are we supposed to do with him? He seems really sick. He was like, hallucinating and… being really weird. Like I don’t know what Dream told him, but his personality has just… flipped. He’s really not okay.”

Tommy stood up. “I see your point, Niki, I really do, but there’s a war coming…”

Tubbo shook his head. “I dunno, Tommy. I have to agree with Niki. That sounds super weird. Of course, I’m very sure it’s just his fever mixing with the stress and shock, but I do think he needs attention.”

Fundy nodded, ears down. 

Tommy sighed. “Fine. Just don’t blame me when the bastard doesn’t thank you.”

“Tommy, we don’t need thanks. It’s our job. And don’t be mad, he’s clearly not okay.” Niki pleaded.

Tommy rolled his eyes. “Yeah, still hurt.”

Tubbo stood to join Tommy. “You wanna talk about it, big man?”   
Tommy shook his head. “Don’t be weird, Tubbo.”

“Well, we should at least get some sleep. See you later, Niki.” Tubbo grabbed Tommy’s arm and led him down the hallway.

Niki turned towards Fundy. “You should really be asleep right now, Fundy.”

Fundy shivered. “I’m not tired.”

Niki hugged him. “You’re scared and cold and it’s late. Everyone else is sleeping, and I should really be getting home.”   
“Oh, right, sorry Niki. I guess I can go to bed.”   
“You’re sweet, Fundy. Let’s get you tucked in, then.”

Tommy and Tubbo continued their conversation on their adjacent beds. “He’s just a prick sometimes, Tubbo.” Tommy complained.

“I know, but he’s under a lot of stress. He’s been ruling alone since Techno and Phil left, and stuff has slowly been piling up. We kinda hit the last nerve.” Tubbo pointed out, swinging his feet on his bed.

“I know, but he could be nicer.”

“I guess.”

“Whatever. G’night Tubbo.”

“Goodnight Tommy.”


	11. Chapter 8

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> fundy has a nightmare uH OH

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> see ya next week

Niki walked Fundy back to his room and tucked him in, yet he still wasn’t tired. He laid there curled up in a ball, thinking about the day’s events. After tossing and turning for what felt like hours, he got out of bed and snuck to Wilbur’s room, his cold feet padding on the stone floor. He made it to Wilbur’s room and hovered by the door, unsure. He carefully grabbed the door handle, and slowly pulled the door open. He popped his head into the room, looking for Wilbur. Wil was passed out on his bed, shivering in his sleep. He seemed to be having a bad dream, but nothing like the hallucinations Fundy overheard. Fundy sighed, turned, and went back to his room. “I can’t bother him, me not being able to sleep isn’t that important.” He muttered under his breath. 

He crawled back into bed, cold, snuggling into his sheets. He sniffled, holding back tears. “Stupid. Why’re you crying.” He whispered to himself. 

He shot up at a knock on his door. “Uh- who is it?” He quickly wiped away his tears.

“Niki.”

Fundy quickly opened his door. “I thought you had to go home.”

Niki nodded, distractedly. “I did, but Tommy told me to take a guest room, and… I was worried about you.”

“I’m okay. I’m just-” He sniffed again. “Worried about Dad.”

“Don’t worry Fundy, I’m sure after some rest and a break from his duties, he’ll be just fine.”

Niki smiled softly at Fundy as she placed a hand on his head. There was a pause, but then Fundy threw himself into Niki, hugging her tightly. Niki began to tear up as Fundy held her tight, she swore to herself that she’d do everything in her power to help Wil recover. Niki then picked up the young fox boy, and set him back in his bed.

“Now get some sleep, you won’t do your Dad any good by making him worry even more about you…”

“Yeah…”

“Goodnight Fundy.”

“Night Niki.”

Niki gave a small wave before closing the door as quietly as she could. Fundy grabbed a fox plushie in which was a memento from his mother, before she disappeared, and got in a comfortable position under the covers. As he began to curl up again, he didn’t realize how tired he was. As he laid there, he drifted off to sleep, only to be greeted by horrific nightmares.

_ Fundy was at the podium, but in the background. He saw himself among other citizens of L’Manburg, sitting in the front row. He could see that people were speaking, but his vision was slightly blurry, and no words were to be heard. All of a sudden a shadowy figure took the spot on the podium, as he watched his Dad and Tommy as they stepped down. Then his position changed, to that of where the shadowy figure was previously, as he watched his Dad and Tommy sprint to the walls of L’Manburg like their lives depended on it. Then it cut to him watching someone from afar tearing down the walls of L’Manburg, upon trying to inspect the person, he saw ears and a tail. He put his hands over his mouth, eyes going wide at the impending shock. No sooner did everything cut to somewhere else, he froze. There a figure stood in-front of the L’Manburg flag, held in their trembling hand was a torch lit ablaze. The figure was hesitant, but then proceeded to set the flag on fire. Fundy watched as it caught on fire and burned brightly. The last thing he saw was the silhouette, his silhouette. He ran forward towards the silhouette, as he reached his arm out he screamed, _

“NO!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> and we slowly are moving along


	12. Chapter 9

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> poor fundy :(
> 
> -me and mere were discussing the whole visions of the future thing and it may change in the future- we just needed something, anything, this was written at least a few weeks back so...
> 
> if their are any edits, we'll make sure to let you know!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> happy new year everyone
> 
> how we all feeling after all the streams from within the last week?
> 
> anyway bringing you the next chapter here!!

As Niki was taking a look at Wilbur, checking over his fever, they both heard a loud yell. Wilbur immediately sat up against Niki’s better judgement.

“Wasn’t that from the direction of Fundy’s room?!” 

“Stay here Wil, I’ll go check on him.”

“No, I cannot do that.”

Niki looked at Wilbur with concern, but reluctantly helped him up, and they walked over to Fundy’s room. From the opposite direction, they saw Tommy running over, Tubbo following not too far behind him. They slammed open the door to Fundy’s room, seeing him jolt upright, crying out, tears in his eyes. Wilbur ran to him, pulling him close into a hug. 

“What happened? It’s okay, I’m here, I’m here. Tell me what happened.” Wilbur said softly, holding him tight. 

“The- the flag- and… and I hurt… I burned… the war…” Fundy couldn’t fit his words together. He was crying and clutching to Wilbur like his life depended on it. 

“I know, the impending war is scary, but it’ll be okay, Fundy.”

“No!” Fundy shook his head and looked up at Wilbur, imploring. “It won’t be okay! I saw… I saw it! We’re gonna… you’re gonna…” 

Fundy was hyperventilating, barely being able to form a sentence, before he passed out in Wilbur’s arms.

“Fundy? Fundy!”

Wilbur shook Fundy repeatedly, but to no avail, he was out cold. Niki rushed forward, checking Fundy’s temperature and heart rate.

“The hyperventilating from what I can assume was a panic attack is what caused him to pass out.”

Wilbur glances up at Niki, not realizing he was raising his voice,

“Is he going to be okay?! What could’ve caused this?!”

Niki flinched,

“Calm down Wil, he's going to be fine, his body just needs a minute.”

“Hey Wilbur, big man, calm down. Scaring the shit out of Niki isn’t going to help anyone.” Tommy looked at Wilbur with disappointment.

Wilbur held his son tightly.

“What could’ve happened in his… nightmare, to cause him to pass out?”

“M’ not sure, what did he say again? Something about the flag, burning, and the war?”

Tommy rested his chin on his hand, thinking.

Tubbo chimed in, “He said it wasn’t going to be okay, then he started on about something that Wilbur had done or was going to do, but passed out before he said anything else.”

“But what could’ve been so bad to cause, all of this?! Doesn’t sound like any normal nightmare to me.”

There was a small whisper from Niki.

“A vision of the future.”

All three men looked up simultaneously. 

“What?”

“Fundy’s half nature spirit, right Wil?” 

Wilbur nodded.

“Some nature spirits have future vision, it comes in a variety of forms. They can only see bits and pieces of the future regarding the land, not to any specif-”

Tommy interrupted her,

“So, then what are you getting at Niki?”

“Niki, are you saying that Fundy saw into the future of what happened to L’Manburg?”

“More like the near future, but yes Tubbo, that's what I was getting to.”

Wilbur sat there in silence staring at his son, holding him tight. The conversation around him blending into a bunch of noise, and then silence.

“ _ What are you going to do now, King Wilbur?” _

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hey if you like mcyts, you make like my youtube videos :D!  
> uploads are- somewhat consistant (at least once a week for sure)  
> me and my friends are entertaining 10/10 pogchamp
> 
> https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCA6cFwJqgHFMo4zywlmfjUA/


	13. Chapter 10

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> and so the slow buildup continues...
> 
> im really bad at summaries sorry

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> guys im so sorry for not posting on time, usually its mere that forgets- but this time we both forgot OPE
> 
> apologies- were both a mess rn lol. We ended up (coincidentally) getting corona at the same time, so we returned to school about the same time, but now her school got quarantined for two weeks. everything is crazy rn, shes busy working on mock trial stuff, and rehearsal for her show, and im well, trying to get ahead in schoolwork as well as working on mental health lol.
> 
> we have chapters written tho and good for the next 8 weeks after this chapter, so we'll continue to post! dont worry! 
> 
> we know we have some plot holes n things that kinda make no sense, but thats okay, we'll get it all together eventually! we appreciate all of you who are sticking around, as well as newcomers! you're all amazing <3 
> 
> i myself stream minecraft and make youtube videos too! if you love mcyt's you might like my content :D! i stream on weekends and sometimes weekdays, usually around 7-10 est and for about 2-5 hours depending on whats happening. (https://www.twitch.tv/tazeverse)
> 
> just a reminder that  
> -youre amazing  
> -hydrate  
> -take care of yourself  
> -dont push yourself too hard  
> -we love you <3
> 
> ps. theres a bit a the end thats striked out, dont mind our notes.

Wilbur gasped, and looked away from Fundy for the first time in awhile. He began glancing around the room frantically.

“Hey Wil, is everything okay?”

Tommy and Tubbo immediately stop their conversation and look over to Wilbur and Niki.

“I- I’m not sure…”

Niki looked over towards the boys,

“You two, go get yourselves something to eat, I’ll look after Wil and Fundy.”

Tommy and Tubbo nodded, and left Fundy’s room.

Tommy and Tubbo make their way down the long hallway leading to the kitchen.

“What exactly do you think happened in his vision Tommy?”

“I’m not sure Tubbo, b- but-”

Tommy struggled to say. He stopped and looked down at his feet.

“This is definitely all my fault Tubbo…”

“Tommy, no it’s not, I’m-”

“No! Tubbo you’re not. This is all of my fault, if only I wasn’t so… so…”

He was struggling to find his words, slowly breaking down.

Tubbo had never seen his best friend like this. He was usually the emotional one, Tommy had never been one for showing his hardships in front of others.

Tubbo hesitated, then shook his head. “Listen, man. It’s not your fault. We’re all going to help. It’ll be fine.”

Tommy sighed. “I hope you’re right, Tubbo.”

They quickly grabbed some snacks in the kitchen, Tubbo sitting on the counter. 

“It makes me wonder though… I wonder how Flordania is doing.” Tubbo mused. 

“Probably better than we are.” Tommy said bitterly.

“Well, I think they only want us to think that. They could be panicking just like we are.”

“Probably not though.”

“But they could be.”

“Tommy, just try to look on the bright side for once, would you?”

Tommy sighed. “Fine.  _ Maybe _ they’re in worse shape than us.”

“Thank you.” Tubbo hopped off the counter. “Well, I think we’ve got all the snacks we need now. This should keep us going, because who knows what else will interrupt our sleep.”

“Amen to that.”

The boys headed back to their room to brainstorm what to do about the war. Through the wall they could just hear Niki murmuring to Fundy.

Tommy glanced at the wall where the sound was resonating from. “I wonder if Fundy’s okay. We all seem to be kinda messed up.”

Tubbo nodded sadly. “Yeah, It’s weird that he and Wilbur both had nightmares right after the news. Like father like son, I guess.”

“Yeah.”

Fundy slowly awoke, hearing Niki quietly reassuring him. “N-Niki?”

Niki gasped, and pulled away from him slightly. “Fundy? I- are you alright? You passed out and you started talking about a nightmare… you really scared us, Fundy.”

Wilbur nodded. Desperately holding back tears. “I don’t know what you saw, Fundy, but it’s going to be okay. I promise. We’re going to figure this out, just…  _ please _ try and forget. I don’t want you to be burdened by the incoming war. You’re just a kid…”

Fundy shook his head. “I’m older than Tommy and Tubbo. ( ~~AGAIN I DON'T ACTUALLY KNOW WE’LL FIGURE IT OUT, maybe he’s older, but mentally still maturing? Sure we can just leave this bit~~ )  And I’m technically next in line, unless you die early.”

They way Fundy said that so nonchalantly hurt Wilbur's heart. 

_ “What did I say? They don’t care.” _

Wilbur glanced around, panicked.

Fundy grew worried, seeing Wilbur’s odd behavior. “Besides, dad, if anyone’s not okay it’s you. But I’ve seen something… and it’s  _ important _ . We can’t just ignore what I saw. I want to help.”

Fundy looked up hopefully at his father, but WIlbur just shook his head. “You’re still too young. You don’t need to fight. And we don’t even know if it’s real. It was just a dream, so relax, okay?”

Fundy shuddered, trying to reign in his anger. Tears sparked in the corners of his eyes. “So- so my input doesn’t even matter anymore? I’m your  _ son _ , dad! I can help! I’m next in line and you won’t even teach me how to help with these sorts of matters!”

_ “You can’t trust them. They’ll only ruin it.” _

“I-”

_ “You’ll be the only survivor of the war. Better to do it alone.” _

Wilbur’s expression turned cold. “I don’t need your help. You’ll only get in the way. Just…” His expression softened slightly. “Just try to forget, okay?”

Fundy’s vision turned blurry. “I can’t believe this.” He stood and ran out of the room.

“Fundy!” Niki called after him, then turned on Wilbur. “He could’ve helped, Wilbur! Why would you do that?” She followed Fundy out the door.

Wilbur sat, alone, in his son’s room. “I hope you’re right.” He told himself quietly.

_ “You know I am. It’s for everyone’s good. You’re the only one who knows. Even if he saw the future, he doesn’t know. Don’t let him.” _

“...I understand.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> beep boop bop our google doc is 43 pages long and counting dresus. 18 chaps written so far :) (almost all done by mere!)  
> meanwhile ive had such bad artblock that i havent drawn shittttttt  
> fun times fun times
> 
> cya next week <3


	14. Chapter 11

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> meredith has come to the conclusion that she's stumped, writers block + canon is limiting her flow and that she just can't get anymore. were officially discontinuing this work- for now.

Niki ran after Fundy, breathing hard. “Fundy, wait! Please, you’re so much faster than I am!”

Fundy slowed down, shaking his head. Tears were streaming down his face for the second time that night. “I can’t believe him.”

Niki nodded, rubbing Fundy’s back comfortingly. “I know. But… he’s just scared Fundy. He’s trying to protect you.”

Fundy sniffled. “You have to go home, right?”   
Niki smiled, but nodded. “Well, yeah, but don’t think you’re keeping me. I don’t mind staying.”   
“No, I…” He looked away, embarrassed. “I was wondering if I could stay with you for a night. I don’t really want to be around Wil right now.”

Niki’s eyes widened, just a tiny bit. “I- uh- I know I shouldn’t be saying this but- please don’t call Wilbur by his name. I- I shouldn’t say that, but he’s your dad, and I want you guys to be close.”

Fundy nodded numbly. “Okay. Sure.”

Niki smiled sadly. “Okay. Let’s go get some sleep.” She led Fundy down the dark road, unaware of someone watching them.

-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-

Tommy lay awake, listening to the sound of Tubbo breathing.  _ Of course Tubbo can sleep well. He didn’t cause this whole thing. _ Tommy thought bitterly.

He stared out the window, looking at the moonlight shining in. He glanced at the jukebox in the corner. “I wish I had some Mellohi to play right now…” He mumbled. Suddenly feeling tired, he laid down and slept. And dreamt. 

_ Flashing images of multiple scenes. Tubbo, in a box, being shot to death. A large explosion. Tubbo, with a faceless man that radiated evil energy. A betrayal? Tubbo, in a suit, serious. Banishment? Himself, on a bridge. He’s shot. The scene moves on. Himself again, in a pit, being beaten, inches from death. Himself, over and over. Fire. Fights. Explosions. Betrayals. And… sacrifice. The discs pass through the dreams, but Tommy can never reach them. Never grab hold of them. A last image. A grave. The name cannot be made out. The only real clue is a few words on it. ‘Son of Philza.’ A voice reaches through the dream. “They all betray you. After everything you give, they expect more. No matter what you do, it’ll never be enough to satisfy them. You’ll never gain their approval. You’ll be exiled.” _

Tommy awoke startled, breathing heavily. “What…”

Tommy glanced over to Tubbo, who was still sound asleep. His chest felt like it was on fire and his head was pounding. Tommy slowly walked down the hallway, holding his head. He stumbled past Phil’s old office, and paused. He walked in cautiously, towards the desk, which was covered in a heap of dust. After sweeping away the dust with his hand, and having a coughing fit, he pulled out some parchment and some ink and began writing.

“ _ Dear  _ _ Dad _ _ Phil, _

_ Just writing a letter, although I’m not actually sure when it will get to you. Things here are starting to get… tense. _

_ Long story short Phil, I think I fucked up, like really  _ **_really_ ** _ fucked up.  _

_ Me and Dream had a little bit of an  _ _ argument _ _ fight about the discs, you know, Cat and Mellohi. Everyone else just thinks of them as just another object, but they’re really special to me… _

_ Dream stole them, and then I stole them back. I thought everything was going to be fine, until Sapnap told Tubbo that Dream wanted to meet with Wil.  _

_ Wil came back really fucked up, we don’t know exactly what happened but he seems…  _ **_different_ ** _. He’s really angry at me for “potentially starting a war” with Dream. I also heard he lashed out at Fundy.  _

_ I’m not really sure if he’s going to be okay, but I know that it’s my fault. We’re already starting to prepare for this so-called war that might take place. Apparently L’Manburg was created illegally, or so these old documents Dream gave to Wilbur say. _

_ I’m not sure how much time is going to be left before shit really starts to go down, but I think you should come back home. Please. Bring Techno with you too. I’m really worried about Wil, and I just don’t know what to do… _

_ -Tommy” _

He took the letter, and stuck it in the shared enderchest. It acted like a mailbox almost, being able to send letters, and (on accident) a 6-year old Tommy. He left Phil’s office quickly, and quietly, as to not disturb anyone sleeping.


	15. Chapter 12

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> meredith has come to the conclusion that she's stumped, writers block + canon is limiting her flow and that she just can't get anymore. were officially discontinuing this work- for now
> 
> (we are posting the rest of our written chapters though!)

Tommy’s smile dropped. His posture sagged. “I dunno Tubbo. I don’t think he wants to see me right now.”

“Of course he wants to see you,” Tubbo reassured, leaning on the doorframe. 

Tommy sighed. “Sure. Fine. Why not.” He got up, leaving the blanket on the floor to collect dust. The pair walked down the hallways to Wilbur’s room. They could hear Wilbur muttering to himself through the door. 

Tommy backed away, whispering. “Maybe this wasn’t such a good idea. He doesn’t sound like he’s in his right mind right now.” 

“Nuh-uh.” Tubbo pushed him towards the door. 

“Tubbo, Tubbo, Tubbo, this is a bad idea, we should just leave him alone-”

“Get in there and apologize. Or whatever you need to say to him.”

“Wh- I’m not gonna apologize! He’s the one who should be apologizing to me!”

“Fine, then demand restitution. I’m not gonna judge, but you need to talk to him.”

“Ugh, fine.”

Tommy crept into Wilbur’s room, where he slept fretfully. Glancing back at Tubbo anxiously, he shook Wilbur awake.

Wilbur shot upward with a cry, causing Tommy to jump backward. “Oh- Christ- don’t do that, Wilbur!”

“Tommy- what- what happened? Did Dream do something?”   
“What? No, I just… needed to talk to you.”

“You woke me up because you needed to  _ talk _ ?”

“Yeah. Is that not allowed?” Tommy crossed his arms, defensive.

“Tommy, you’ve started a war, who knows how much sleep I’ll get anymore.”   
“Listen, I did not start a war! I started a miniscule conflict, okay? We don’t even need to involve our kingdom.”   
“Dream involved our kingdom, Tommy, there’s no going back!”

“Well- I mean- surely there’s  _ some _ way to go back. It’s probably fine.”   
Wilbur stared at him, incredulous. “It is not _ fine _ , Tommy. None of this is fine!” He stood abruptly, scaring Tommy another few steps back.

“Says who? Why do you have to be all pessimistic all the time?”

“I’m not being pessimistic, I’m being realistic. Do you want me to be all sunshine and rainbows like, ‘yay, we’re going to go to war! People are going to die!’ is that what you want?”

“I’m not saying we should be happy, dickhead, I’m just saying we don’t need to assume the worst case scenario.”

“Fine, Tommy. Not the worst case scenario. Best case scenario, Dream comes back, apologizes, burns the books, gives us our country back, forgets this ever happened, and we go on with our lives.”

“See? It’s not that hard.”   
“Sure, except what are the chances? I mean it’s not like he hates us or anything. I’m sure if we just say sorry he’ll forgive us and give you a unicorn.”   
“Now you’re just being sarcastic.”

“No, really?”   
“There’s no reason to be mean, Wilbur.”

“Tommy, I’m not going to continue this conversation unless you give me some actual input. Explain why you did this, or apologize, or at least tell me how you’re going to fix it!”   
“Hold on, this isn’t entirely my fault! Dream started this. He probably started this whole conflict with me as an excuse for war.”   
“Well you still fell for the bait, didn’t you? You still screwed us over.”

“I- I didn’t…” Tommy faltered, stepping back.

“You did, Tommy. You did.”

Wilbur pushed past Tommy, opening the door right into Tubbo. He completely ignored the small boy, however, muttering something about coffee.

Tubbo stared awkwardly at Tommy. “I take it that didn’t go well?”

“Why did you make me do that?” 

“Because you needed to talk!”   
“Clearly we didn’t, because that accomplished nothing. All it did was make him more mad at me.”

“I mean it was worth a shot,”

“It really, really wasn’t.” Tommy shook his head, spirit totally gone; dejected. 

“Okay… let’s just go find Fundy or something,” Tubbo tried.

Tommy didn’t look up. “You go on ahead. I need a minute to think.”

Tubbo hesitated, then clapped Tommy on the shoulder. “Okay. See you in a few, big man.” He left Tommy alone in the long hallway with his thoughts.


	16. Chapter 13

Wilbur rummaged through the kitchen for coffee, but only found some dried up potions, sugar, and a slightly moldy chicken. Throwing away the majority of these, Wilbur sighed, as the voice wormed itself back into his thoughts.  _ “Good. Don’t let Tommy think that it’s okay, or else he’ll start more conflict. No one wants that, do we?”  _

“I dunno. I feel like shutting him down might make him more prone to lashing out.”   
_ “Please. This is for their own good. And who knows best? I showed you the future. I’m trying to help you.” _

Wilbur thought for a moment. “What are you, anyway?”

_ “You don’t need to know. If I give you answers you’ll just demand more. You’ll never be satisfied. I’m shutting you down, so you can see why it’s going to help Tommy and Fundy. No questions. Got it?” _ _   
_ “I mean, I didn’t really need a demonstration, but okay.” Wilbur mumbled.

_ “I’m telling you, it’s for your and everyone’s good.” _

“Okay,” Wilbur grumbled. “Wish I had coffee though. You know where any coffee is?”

_ “...sure. Head down to town, Niki’s bakery.” _

“I’m not sure if it’ll be open. Niki stayed here last night.”

_ “...It’s open.” _

“How do you know?”

_ “It’s open.” _

Wilbur packed up his things, heading down the hallways until he ran into Tubbo, looking panicked. 

“Hey, Wilbur, have you seen fundy?”

“No? I just woke up. I’m going to Niki’s bakery.”

“Are you sure it’s open? Never mind. I can’t find Fundy. I think he might have run off.”   
“Fundy…” Wilbur ran a hand through his hair. “I’ll look for him in town but I really need some coffee.”

“Buy some extra, will you? Tommy and I finished it off last night.”   
Wilbur nodded tiredly. “Sure. See you later, Tubbo.”   
“See you,”

Wilbur headed towards town in a beautiful sunny day. The grass was moist with dew, and there was no more chilly breeze to be found. He made it to Niki’s bakery, and to his surprise, found it open and running, with Fundy inside. 

“Fundy? What’re you doing down here? We were starting to get worried about you.” 

Fundy looked up, surprised. “Oh, W- Dad! I didn’t know you were up. I thought you’d still be sleeping by now.”

Wilbur glanced at Niki. “Unfortunately, Tommy woke me up. I’m just here for some coffee.”

Niki smiled brightly. “Sure thing! Coming right up! Do you want a muffin or something to go along?”

Wilbur pondered. “No, but if Fundy wants something I’ll pay.” He looked towards his son. “You want anything, bud?”

Fundy warmed up to Wilbur, finally losing tension that Wilbur hadn’t noticed earlier. “Yeah, can I get a blueberry scone?”

Wilbur smiled fondly at his son, ruffling his fur. “Sure thing. One blueberry scone, Niki.”   
“You got it!” Niki beamed. 

The father-son duo reconciled, they spent a lovely morning together; mostly uninterrupted by the voice in Wilbur’s head. 

Eventually they said goodbye to Niki and headed back to the castle. It had gotten hot enough to be uncomfortable, and all the coffee they had bought was beginning to weigh them down.

Fundy suddenly looked up, nervous. “Dad?”

Wilbur looked over at his son. “Yeah, Fundy?”

His ears were flattened in fear. “I, uh… I hear something.”   
Wilbur glanced around, on alert. “Hear what?”

“I think… someone’s here…”

Wilbur pushed Fundy behind him, taking their bags of coffee and placing it on the ground. “I want you to run to the castle and tell Tommy that something felt up. If I'm not back in 15, stay inside. They can handle it. Okay?”

Fundy whimpered, “But… what if… what do you think is out there? Why should we be scared? Who would hurt us so close to home?”   
Wilbur’s eyes were flicking back and forth, never resting. “I have an inkling. It’s okay, Fundy. They won’t hurt me. I think I’m just going to have a little chat. Go on ahead. Remember, Tommy, 15. Got it?”   
Fundy nodded, and was off like a shot. 

Wilbur breathed slowly, summoning calm. He surveyed the area, controlling his heartbeat as best as possible. The field was large, and there were few hills. The small flowers that dotted the field were still in the stagnant air, not a breeze to be found. Just still blue, yellow, red, and white dots in a sea of green. Behind him, Wilbur knew the village sat, content and unaware, like a lamb before the slaughter. Ahead, a figure seemed to materialize out of nowhere, from behind one of the few trees that sparsely populated the field. He slowly approached Wilbur, finally coming to a stop a few feet in front of him.

“Hello, Wilbur.”   
“Hi, Dream. Any, uh, particular reason you’re talking to me right now?”

“Well, I just wanted to know if we should have a conversation. You know, discuss the logistics and terms of this war.”   
“What war, what war? You’ve never officially declared anything!”

“Yes, well, that was the point of the meeting.”

“Well, if you want to discuss the minor conflict, I’m willing to do so. Perhaps in the Holy Land?”

“Discussing war in a church? Well, I suppose that’s fair. Safety first. We should also consider discussing the company.”   
“Company? Who, George and Sapnap? I’d rather they not attend.”

“You would. Well, I’m fine with them not being around for the initial meeting. After, of course, I’ll need them with me.”   
“Slow down, Dream. We still haven’t officially called it a war.”   
Dream stared at Wilbur for a moment. “We both know what this is, Wilbur,” He said mirthlessly.

Wilbur looked down, nodding quietly. “Fine. We can meet in the Holy Land,” He looked up. “When do you want to meet? In a month?”

Dream laughed. “A month? We don’t need that much time. Let’s do Tuesday.”   
“Two days?” Wilbur cried. “Don’t you think that’s a little soon?”

“Not at all. We already know everything we need to know. It’s just a formality. There’s no need to wait.” He cocked his head at Wilbur. “Unless you’re planning something?”   
Wilbur shook his head quickly. “Of course not. Tuesday is fine. I’ll see you then.”

Dream smiled underneath his mask. “Tuesday it is,” He began to walk away. “At noon- don’t be late!” He shouted over his shoulder.


	17. Chapter 14

Fundy paced in the main hall, Tommy fidgeting next to him. Tubbo watched the clock, counting the seconds. 

“Why isn’t he here yet?” Fundy whimpered.

Tubbo shook his head. “I don’t know. By what he was saying, he’s probably meeting with Dream right now; and that can’t be good.” 

Tommy stayed silent. 

They worried for another few minutes.

“It’s been fourteen minutes. Maybe we should…” Tubbo trailed off.

Tommy shook his head. “Fifteen minutes. Then I’ll tell you what to do. But we have to wait.”

Fundy looked up at Tommy. “I didn’t know you and Wilbur had a procedure.”   
Tommy grimaced. “I didn’t think we’d have to use it.”

“I only knew the gist of it, I don’t really know what the steps entail.” Tubbo contributed.

“Let’s just say a lot of it includes stabbing shit and running.” Tommy said grimly.

“Guys? It’s been fifteen minutes.”

All three faced the clock.

“Oh.” Tommy and Tubbo said together.

Suddenly, the large palace doors began to creak open.

Tommy’s face hardened. He swept Fundy behind him with one arm. “Be on your guard, guys.”

To their surprise, however, it was Willbur who walked in.

“Dad!” Fundy ran to his father, crashing into a hug.

Wilbur smiled and reciprocated. 

“Wilbur?” Tommy let out a shaky laugh. “That was fifteen. You’re really cutting it close here, man.”

Wilbur smiled. “I told Fundy I’d be fine.”

Tubbo smiled at Tommy. His eyes seemed to say,  _ I knew everything would work out. _ Tommy smiled too. “Glad you’re safe, big man.”

Wilbur nodded, but his eyes were a little clouded. 

“What’s on your mind?” Tubbo said, reading him instantly.

“We’re due for a meeting with Dream on Tuesday.” Wilbur cautiously said. 

Tommy froze. “A… meeting? Are we invited?”

Wilbur pondered this. “Yes, I think so. But it would be prudent of us to not bring weapons.”

“At all?” Tommy protested.

Wilbur let slip a ghost of a smile. “Well… minimal weapons.”

“Can I come too?” Fundy asked quietly.

Wilbur’s face grew stony. He crouched to look Fundy in the eyes. “Here’s the thing. You’re a little young for this, and I don’t want any leverage from you. Maybe it would be better if you just stayed; at least for this first meeting. I just want to test the water before we throw you in. Is that okay?”   
Fundy thought for a moment. “Okay,” he said quietly. “But I want to see the next one.”

“Deal.” Wilbur shook his hand, then straightened. 

“Okay,” He said, looking out over his family. “What’s the plan? If we’re gonna meet Dream I want us to be prepared. So, who has any ideas?”

Tubbo perked up. “If we know that Sapnap and George will be there, it’s probably in our best interests to ignore them. Dream only really wants them for muscle, not their opinions. We’ll be there for opinions, but I think it’s better if only Wilbur speaks.” He glanced at Tommy. “And Tommy, please do your best to control your temper if at all possible.”

Tommy sputtered out some defensive nonsense, but eventually agreed to stay quiet.

Tubbo continued. “We also should figure out how to get out of this with as little damage as possible. If Dream is determined for war, then we should figure out a way to keep it personal and far away from L’Manberg as possible.” 

Wilbur nodded. “I’m sure we can figure something out.”   
Tubbo hesitated before adding, “There’s also the question of leverage.” He cut another glance at Tommy. “What does Dream have on us? What do we have on him? How much of that cancels out?”

“Okay- this whole fight was based around my discs. He’s using them to have power over me. Giving them to him will only make our overall situation worse.” When they looked skeptical, Tommy continued. “The discs give him power. If we do this to end the war, he’s going to hold them over my head forever. And I can’t just stop caring about them. Trust me, guys. We can’t give it up.”

Wilbur sighed, shaking his head. “Fine. What else do we have, then?”

Tommy thought for a moment. Tubbo perked up. “There’s his horse, Spirit. It died, but Dream keeps its pelt on the grave. If we stole it-”

“Are you suggesting grave robbing? Tubbo, we can’t just steal a corpse!” Wilbur interjected.

Tubbo glanced at Tommy. Wilbur noticed this, and let out a long sigh.

“Tubbo,  _ please _ tell me you didn’t steal a corpse.” Wilbur pleaded.

“Well… not exactly.”

“Tubbo!”

The stress and absurdity of this statement sent them all into a laughing fit until they finally relaxed. 

“Okay,” Wilbur said “I say it’s time for a break.”

They all nodded in agreement, and split off to enjoy themselves in their rooms. Except for Tubbo, who went outside. He said he was catching bees, but they all decided to keep an eye on him in case he went off grave robbing. Tommy listened to a disc in his room. Not the important ones, but Tubbo’s favorite, Chirp. He tried to listen to the music and ignore the nagging feeling of doom in his chest. Wilbur sat in his room, quiet. He wasn’t doing anything, just sitting. Only once did he whisper “Where did you go?” but otherwise he was silent. Fundy was reading a book on his bed, enjoying himself, carefree. 

Eventually the clocks on their walls all read 8:00. Sighing, Wilbur stood and went from room to room, getting everyone back. 

“Alright, break time is over. We’ve had a good few hours. Honestly, we should sleep soon; but I just want to go over the fundamentals before heavy planning tomorrow. What else do we know?” 

Tommy took a deep breath. “I think it’s probably time for me to explain how Dream got angry with me. Remember when I said Sapnap said Dream wanted to speak with you? Well, when that happened, he slipped me a disc. But only one. See, Sapnap and I had managed to beat Dream in a fight, and it made him angry. I tried to negotiate, but he’s crazy, man! He broke into my room and went through all of my shit to try and find the disc I got back. I had hidden it really far away, but somehow he tracked my steps and stole it. He said he wouldn’t give it back unless I gave him the secrets to our strong militia, including our armor- how we keep it so strong. Tubbo and I tried to fight him, but he beat us really bad. Twice. I fought him over and over, and we kept scamming each other. Eventually I did manage to get the discs back though. Apparently that pissed him off, and now he’s starting a war.” 

Wilbur just blinked at Tommy for a minute. “How did I not know  _ any of this _ ? How did I not notice your scars, or your absence, or-”

“It’s not your fault, Wilbur! Tubbo helped me hide it from you. You were busy… I didn’t want to bother you.”

Wilbur’s expression softened. “Tommy… well, I’m not going to say you’re never a bother, but you don’t need to hide things from me. Especially because when you do, it  _ starts wars _ .”

Tommy laughed awkwardly. “Yeah… that’s fair. Listen. I promise that no matter what I do, from now on I will always inform you. Cause we’re a team. We’re a family.”

Wilbur nodded. “Deal.”

He took a deep breath. “Okay. So, thank you for telling the truth. Now, about Sapnap. He helped you, right? Can we trust him?”

Tommy thought for a moment. “I don’t think so. He immediately went back to dream. Even though he slipped me a disc, I think he’s in it for himself. He’s too much of a wild card.”

Wilbur nodded again. “Okay, I trust your judgement.” He laughed a little. “Anything else you want to tell me?”

Tommy considered giving Wilbur more detail, but shook his head. “I don’t think so.” 

“Okay. I guess we should get some rest then.”

The group went to bed, but none of them slept well.


	18. Chapter 15

Wilbur got them all up bright and early, and although they complained it was obvious that none of them had slept. They solemnly sat at the dinner table, dark circles under everyone’s eyes. 

“Alright, team. One day until the meeting. The main thing to remember is to  _ keep your composure _ . This means you, Tommy.”

Tommy glared at Wilbur but let him continue.

“Dream is going to be annoying. He’s going to mess with us and try to escalate the situation in his favor. We  _ need _ to make sure that he doesn’t get what he wants, or it’ll get so much worse. Got it?”

Everyone made general agreement noises. 

“Okay. I vote we take this day to relax before everything goes downhill.” Wilbur conceded.

“Amen to that,” Tommy said tiredly. 

Fundy wiggled over to Wilbur.. “Dad, can we see Niki again? I wanna tell her where we’ll be going. I also want another pastry.”

Wilbur smiled, ruffling his son’s fur affectionately. “Sure thing, my little champion.”

Fundy blushed. “Dad, stop calling me that. It’s embarrassing!” 

Wilbur just smiled. “Anyone want something while we’re out?”

Tubbo looked up. “Ooh, I want a pastry! Something with, like, a honey glaze.”

“You got it! You want anything, Tommy?” 

“Nah.” Tommy shrugged.

Wilbur looked at Tommy, concerned, for a moment, but turned away. “Alright. Be back soon, guys.”

He and Fundy headed down the hall.

Tommy glanced at Tubbo. “I know he said composure, but… he doesn’t really think that I’m not gonna say anything.”

Tubbo coughed awkwardly. “I think it would be better if you didn’t. You kinda messed things up already.”

“What? Come on, that’s not fair! I didn’t do anything… this was Dream’s fault.” 

“I know but you’re not going to get anywhere by further antagonizing him.”

“Yeah, that’s fair. But I just want to get a few words in.”

“Something tells me that is a terrible, terrible idea.”

“Tubbo, please! He’s been attacking us and taunting us, and we finally have a chance to get a word in! How can we not?”   
“Because Wilbur asked us not to!” 

“But he’s going to be  _ right there _ . Actually, what’s stopping us from just stabbing him?”   
“Because it’s a peaceful meeting! Tommy, you’re not the King, but you still have political ties. You can’t just… kill people. We need to handle this delicately. Besides, you and Wilbur only just made up. You want to ruin that?”

“I just… want him to know. I want to make him feel as frustrated as we have. He ruined everything!”

“I know, man. But we just have to trust Wilbur.”

“...Okay. Fine.” Tommy glanced away, then back. “But  _ still _ -”

“Nope.” Tubbo turned away and started heading down the hall. “We are  _ not _ continuing this conversation.” 

“Come on, Tubbo. You and me against the world!”

“Not if you keep talking like that.”

“What happened to you being clingy?”

“What happened to being reasonable and listening to Wilbur?” 

“Listen, if I’m annoyed, all rules go out the window.”

“Yeah,  _ I know _ . That’s how this started.”   
“I can’t help it!”

“Yes you could, you could just-”   
“Tubbo,  _ please. _ ”

“...I”m just trying to look after you. It’s for everyone’s benefit if you just stay calm tomorrow.”   
“I’ll do my best.”   
“Promise?”

“...Promise.”

“Good. Listen, I need to go and… prepare. I’ll talk to you later, big man.” 

Tommy hesitated, biting back his words. “...Okay.” 

Tommy stood, alone, in the empty hallway. He could feel the temperature leaching out of the window, giving him a chill. He shivered, but didn’t move, clearly deep in thought. His lips moved quietly to unspoken words, his thought process locked inside his mind, not allowed out. 

He bit his lip, thinking of Dream. What would he say? As much as he wanted to give him a good poke with a sword, Tubbo and Wilbur were probably right. Still…

His hands twitched a little, wishing he had a weapon. Eventually he sighed, and moved on to sit in his room. He fiddled with his tools, sharpening and cleaning them. He glanced over at the L’manberg flag over his bed. He couldn’t shake a feeling of unease settling on his shoulders. 

Eventually the day slowly drew to a close, the light fading from the sky. Tubbo met up with Tommy in their room, and they talked lightheartedly, as if nothing were going to happen. 

Wilbur sang Fundy to sleep, which he hadn’t done in a long while. The two boys heard it through the wall, and they were lulled to sleep as well.

Wilbur, however, did not sleep. He made potions, sharpened his weapons, cleaned his armor, went over his speech to say to dream, and eventually passed out on his desk; even though the desk in question was covered in potion ingredients, paper, and a half-eaten pastry. 

They all slept, and dreamt dark things none of them would remember.

It was the last time they slept for a while.


	19. Chapter 16

Morning struck, and they all dressed in their uniforms, filing out the door. Fundy waited anxiously inside the castle, only briefly nodding to Wilbur’s “We’ll be right back”. They marched across the land, out of their territory, making their way to the Holy Land. 

The silhouettes of Dream, Sapnap, and George were clear to see across the field, all three of them armed but casually leaning against Church Prime. Wilbur lifted his chin, slowing his stride and slowly approaching Dream. As they drew closer, it was very clear what kind of meeting this was going to be. The Flordanians were dressed for battle, including Dream. He was wearing his usual outfit, a fancy royal green shirt, but his cape and crown were gone. The only thing he was still wearing was his mask; the one he wore for battle. Dream’s mask was usually connected to his crown, so his ‘war mask’ was a sure sign of an incoming fight.) Tommy swallowed hard. His bad feeling only grew the closer they came to the trio. Dream noticed Tommy, and smiled wide. Another feature of the war mask was that it was smaller, so Dream’s mouth was visible. Dream nodded at Tommy, and probably winked under the mask. Tommy’s plan of staying silent had just been thrown out of the window until Wilbur put a calming hand on Tommy’s shoulder, giving him a look. Tommy nodded, swallowed again, and followed Wilbur into the church, with Tubbo close behind. 

HEY RANDOM SIDE NOTE I WANT ERET TO BE A LORD I JUST DONT KNOW OF WHICH KINGDOM YET OK THANKS

As they were meeting in a church, it was hard to find a proper place for them to all be comfortable. Eventually, it turned into Dream and Wilbur standing in front of the Prime Bell, with the other four in the front pews, two per side. Dream leaned on the counter, but Wilbur stood stiffly. 

“So,  _ Dream _ . I assume you want to take charge of this meeting?” Wilbur asked.

Dream let out a small, confident laugh. “You would assume correctly. We are here to officially declare war.” He pulled out some old documents. “Here is a copy of the original Declaration of Independence for L’Manberg, as well as the original Declaration of War between our two kingdoms, as drafted by Flordania’s king at the time.” He chuckled a bit more. “You should read them later, Wilbur. They can be quite entertaining.”

Tommy squinted at the Declaration of Independence. The majority of the print was small, but there was a large portion near the bottom that said ‘SUCK IT GREEN BOY’. Tommy stifled a laugh, and Tubbo pinched his leg.

“So, I will leave you with these copies of the two documents, but of course I have rewritten the original Declaration of War so it’s an actual declaration.”

Wilbur sputtered for a second. “Hold on, Dream, I thought we were going to negotiate at least a little bit! But you’re just outright declaring war? Immediately? Over a petty feud with a sixteen year old, no less? Tommy has no political power, is there really a point to get so touchy over some heirlooms? Especially since I hear it was started because of one of your own guards.” 

Dream glanced at Sapnap. “The matter has been resolved. And this was a long time coming. It may be hard to believe, but finding those documents was a coincidence. And I will not condone knowing our fellow kingdom illegally seceded to run a drug cartel. This war will happen regardless of what you do. It’s up to you to deal with it as you wish.” 

Tommy looked down at the floor, his leg bouncing so aggressively there was probably a dent in the floorboards. Tubbo nervously bit his fingernails. Tommy struggled to keep his thoughts inside. Really, he did. His entire body was trembling along with his bouncing knees, his fingers were tapping a counter-beat, his toes were curling in his shoes, he was biting his lips, and yet nothing could stop him from blurting “Why?”

Wilbur turned to Tommy with murder in his eyes. Dream just laughed. “You know why, Tommy.” He turned back to Wilbur. “I’m going to give you time. Say, a few days.”

“To do what?” Wilbur asked suspiciously. 

“To tell your citizens that you are reforming with our nation, stepping down from power, and shutting down your main source of income. Along with your entire kingdom, of course.”

“Dream!” Wilbur shouted, horrified. “You’re just…  _ nullifying _ our  _ entire existence _ ? What about our citizens? Our economy? Our buildings? The castle? Our history? The excessive amount of materials we’ll have to move? Are there even homes available for the citizens or are they going to be homeless? Who says the citizens will join you at all? What if they just create a community on their own, outside your kingdom?”

Dream laughed, but he was becoming irritated. “They will be part of our kingdom because they have always been citizens. They will not be allowed to leave for a few months, to avoid revolution, of course. But we’ll provide them with housing. I’m not sure about materials. I guess they’ll just have to start fresh.”

Wilbur stood, aghast, shocked into silence. Tommy’s rage was about to boil over. And yet the person who spoke was Tubbo. 

“Well, excuse me for saying this, Dream, but technically we don’t have to do any of that.”

All eyes turned to Tubbo, making him uneasy, but he continued. 

“You’re declaring war, Dream, thus marking us as an actual nation that is clearly not a part of you. Unless you’d consider this civil war, but still. Anyway, those may be your demands, but we don’t have to comply. That’s really only a worst case scenario. This is war, so there will be fighting. Whoever wins gets to set the demands. You’re just holding your power over our heads, but technically we really have the same social status. We don’t need to accept your demands.” 

Wilbur smiled widely at Tubbo. On the outside he said “Thank you, Tubbo.” but on the inside he was screaming, so grateful for bringing the sixteen year old. Dream glowered. “Believe what you want. You’ll still have to accept my demands. You’ll only lose.” Turning, he clapped Wilbur on the shoulder, causing the man to wince. “Well. See you later, Wilbur.” The Flordainians left, slightly less cocky then they were before. As soon as they were out of earshot, Wilbur and Tommy exploded.

“YEAH, TUBBO!” “Dude, that was amazing! You totally shut Dream down!” “I am never calling you a child again.” “Where’d you get to be so smart?”

Tubbo laughed, relaxing. “It’s just etiquette. That’s what I was studying.”

“And here I thought that stuff was boring and useless,” Tommy remarked. 

“Tubbo, I personally want you in my cabinet.” 

“Really?” Tubbo asked, eyes glowing. 

“Really.” Wilbur promised.

“Hey, what about me? I was quiet!” Tommy complained.

Wilbur laughed. “Yes, Tommy. Very good job.” He started heading out, motioning them to follow. “Let’s get a pastry in celebration.”

“Yay, sweets!” Tubbo cheered.

“Of course, it’s not going to be all sunshine and daisies. We are at war. I’m going to need to draft a speech for our citizens- Tubbo, I want you to help- and we need to prepare our militia. We’re probably going to need to evacuate some of the area, halt trade, reserve food, but preserve the economy. Also, I want you guys to scan the archives for our history. Come to think of it, I never really learned it. We have a lot of things to do, but…” He smiled fondly at his brothers. “I’m really proud of you guys. Of all of us.”

Tommy softened, just a little, at these words. “We’re proud of you too, Wil. Couldn’t ask for a better king.” 

Heart warmed, Wilbur decided it was time to drop the seriousness. “Aww, Tommy, are you being sweet? Are you proud of me?”

Tommy flushed. “No- I thought we were being serious, not being weird- Wilbur!” 

Tubbo 'awed’ behind them as Tommy hit Wilbur on the arm. 

“Shut up, let’s get some pastries and get out of here.”

They day ended on a higher note than it had started. Except…

_ “I hope you made the right choice, Wilbur.” _


	20. Chapter 17

Dream stormed into the castle, enraged. “After all the advice I gave him. He still brought the children, and now he thinks he doesn’t have to listen!” 

George tried to soothe his king. “It’s okay. Drista’s visions are real. They will lose nonetheless. You’re just annoyed.”

“Damn right I’m annoyed.” Dream punched the wall. “He isn’t listening to me! I know if I try to contact him now, he’ll get suspicious. I’m going to have to wait until he gets insecure again. Who knows how long that’ll take with Tubbo there.” He paused. “Maybe we can use Eret.”

Eret was a Lord of L’Manberg, but he was worried about losing his job on Wilbur’s cabinet. His radical views sometimes caused Wilbur to be wary of him, which wasn’t good. Eret believed that they should work with Flordania more, secretly harboring the ideals that they never should have seceded. “If I use him as a spy…” Dream trailed off.

Sapnap smiled. “I like the sound of that.”

Dream nodded. “I’m going to see Drista.” He said abruptly. He turned on his heel, walking down the hallway. Although he wasn’t wearing his cape, you could almost see it fluttering royally as he exited. 

“Drista? Are you there?” Dream knocked softly on his sister’s door. He used to play around with her more before he knew about her powers. They would roughhouse and she almost made him lose an eye with a fork. Now, however, he was softer, cunningly caring to keep her gift for himself. 

“I’m here.”

Dream entered her room, which was decorated with mint green walls and large windows, most of which were open. She was leaning out the window next to her bed, breathing the air.

“Hey now, don’t go falling out.” Dream chuckled. 

Drista smirked. “Yeah. I mean, it’s pretty boring being stuck inside all the time. Maybe falling out would make things interesting for once.” She paused. “What do you want?”

Dream gasped, pretending to be affronted. “Want? Can’t a brother want to see his lovely sister every now and then?”

“Not when you put her on house arrest to ‘protect her from herself’.” she said back, air quoting at him. 

Dream frowned. His mask was off, as he only did with family members. “You know I care about you. It really is for your own good. I can’t imagine what they’d do to you if they knew you could see the future. Especially with a war going on.”

Drista sighed. “I know, I know.”

“So… have you seen anything today?”

Drista gasped, almost falling off the bed as she pointed at her brother. “I knew it! I knew you wanted something!”   
Dream laughed, batting his eyes. “Please?”

Drista shook her head. “Nothing yet. Talk to me about what happened today. Verbatim. I feel like it might trigger something.”

“Okay.” Dream thought for a moment. He relayed most of the meeting, but as he mentioned something, Drista stiffened. 

“‘...over a petty feud with a sixteen year old, no less? Tommy has no political power, is there really a point to get so touchy over some heirlooms?’ and then something about how Sapnap started it, which is ridiculous…” 

“Say that again.”

Dream paused, then repeated himself. “‘Over a petty feud with a sixteen year old, no less? Tommy has no political power, is there really a point to get so touchy over some heirlooms?’” He waited quietly for Drista to say something.

Drista muttered a bit, then again, louder. “S-something about how Tommy had political power whether he liked it or not… and getting in trouble for something. She shook her head. “I’m not sure.” 

“That’s okay.” He moved to put a comforting hand on her shoulder, then paused and awkwardly put it back down. When Drista glanced at him, he explained. “I don’t want to get in your head,” He said apologetically. 

“Oh yeah.” Drista paused. “I kinda forgot you had powers too.”

Dream smiled. “Yeah. Don’t forget that I understand. I’ll be there for you if you need me. Even if king duties get in the way.”

Drista nodded. “Yeah. Does…” Her voice changed to a coaxing sound, like one used on skittish animals. “Does that mean I can go outside?” She asked, voice honey-sweet. 

Dream laughed, shaking his head. “I’ll think about it.” 

Drista huffed, fake pouting. “Fine.” 

Dream laughed to himself again, quieter. He moved out of the room, shutting the door softly. 

Drista looked out the window again, trying to visualize being outside. “Soon,” she murmured to herself. “Soon.”

George and Sapnap were there to greet Dream when he reentered the hall. “Alright guys, work time. We need to outplay these ragamuffin revolutionists.” 

“Speaking of muffins, maybe we should talk to Bad.” George contributed. 

“Maybe, but I don’t think it’s necessary. L’Manberg has lost the majority of its army to another war far away. They’ll probably want to keep the fighting personal.”

“Can they do that? Is it even allowed for kings to fight, like, physically?” Sapnap asked. 

“Of course. It’s happened before in history. Of course, they had armies, but their leaders were leading the charge and were even known to seek each other out personally. I don’t see why we can’t do that. And if we don’t use our armies, we save resources so we can tear down their kingdom when we win. 

“Sounds like a plan to me,” Sapnap said, grinning devilishly.

“Good.” Dream stood. “Meeting adjourned, then. I have other matters to attend to.”


	21. Chapter 18

_ Dear Phil, _

_ We are officially at war. Don’t worry, we’re handling it. Wilbur and I have made up, so we’re fine, and Tubbo really clutched for us today. Fundy is doing alright too. So you don’t need to worry or anything. Even though we are at war a little bit. Still, we’re doing fine. You and Techno can continue whatever important work you’re doing. An army would be nice, but I guess they’re needed over there… I don’t really know. No one tells me anything, and now Tubbo’s in the cabinet while I’m still over here doing nothing.  _ _ Except causing wars, I guess.  _ _ Anyway, we’re fine, so… you guys can just chill. We can handle this. We’ll be fine. I guess I’m really telling myself that more than telling you, huh. It doesn’t matter. The odds of you actually seeing these two letters are slim to none.  _

_ I feel _

_ Maybe if  _

_ I’ll write again later, maybe. Hopefully not. _

_ … _

_ -Tommy _

Then he went to bed. And slept.

-_-_-_-

Tommy was woken up early as Wilbur tried (and failed) to rouse Tubbo from his princess-worthy slumber. 

“Wil? What’s going on?” He asked groggily. 

“I’m trying to wake Tubbo up for the cabinet meeting. He’s not waking up though.”

“Oh, just blow on his face. He hates that. Well, he thinks it’s a bee, and gets annoyed when it isn't.” 

Wilbur followed his advice, and soon they had a just as tired (if not more so) Tubbo. 

“Wilburrr, I was up all night in the archives. Can’t I sleep in?” Tubbo complained.

“And miss your first cabinet meeting? I think not.” 

Tubbo sat up, slightly more alert. “That’s true. Ok, Wil, I’ll be up in a minute.”

Tommy rolled over. “Enjoy your meeting.”

Wilbur smiled. “I don’t think so. I need you today too.”

“Really? Why?”

“I need you planning battle strategies. Also, you seemed grumpy when you weren’t invited.”   
Tommy rolled his eyes. “I’m not jealous, I just want to help. Anyway, the battle strategies meeting will be after, right? So let me sleep.” He scoffed. 

“Fine, sleep in. But don’t blame me if you miss the meeting.”

“When is it?”

“Eight.”

“Eight!? What time is it now?” Tommy demanded.

“Five.”   
“ _ Five _ ?” Tommy asked incredulously. 

“Yes. Enjoy your sleep.” Wilbur left, with Tubbo trotting tiredly behind.

“I will,” Tommy mumbled into his pillow. 

“This meeting is to go over a speech for a very sensitive topic I have only briefed some of you on.” Wilbur glanced at Tubbo as he said this. “So don’t expect us to get started right away. That being said, let this cabinet meeting begin.”

Everyone was quiet, watching Tubbo as he sat next to Wilbur. Finally, Eret decided to speak.

“So, Tubbo’s part of the cabinet now? Good for you, man.” Despite his odd political views, Eret was still a kind soul. The fact he was both a wizard and on Wilbur’s cabinet showed how smart and helpful he was. 

Tubbo smiled as Wilbur spoke. “Yes. After yesterday’s events, I think he’ll be exactly what we need. He came up with a brilliant speech that was not only polite and correct, but totally shut Dream down.” 

There was mild applause from around the table. 

“So, I have the unfortunate news that we are officially at war.”   
Everyone gasped. “And you didn’t find it prudent to tell us that first?” One man asked, horrified.

“Ah, yes. I guess that was important. Sorry, all. Anyway, I have a first draft for a speech on how to announce this to our subjects.”

He passed a copy to each member at the table, and they all muttered and wrote small notes. No one had much to add besides grammar fixes and changing parts to make them more elegant. When they came to Tubbo, however, he floored them.

“I think we should change the whole third paragraph. So, instead of  _ ‘It is quite unfortunate how this has played out and how sudden this is, but we are all doing our best to accommodate everything and resolve this as peacefully as possible.’  _ We could try ‘Although these facts may be disheartening to many, considering how these proceedings have occurred and the fact that we are springing this news on you all quite suddenly, I and the rest of my cabinet are doing everything within our power to resolve this peacefully with as little damages as possible. We ask that you are patient with us and in return we will do our very best to win this war for all of you.’ or something.”

Everyone stared at Tubbo, and he blushed, embarrassed. “It’s just some thoughts I had.” 

“Man, Tubbo. Every second I’m more glad I have you on my cabinet. Did anyone write that down?” Wilbur asked.

One man had, and they kept that paragraph in the final draft.

“Well done,” Wilbur murmured.

-_-_-

Tommy woke up at 7, just in time to find Wilbur before the meeting. “So, uh, what is this meeting actually about?” 

“We’re talking strategy. We’ve just received word on how Dream plans on fighting, and it’s going to be a lot better for us. I’ll explain more in-depth at the meeting. Just be mature and they’ll respect you.”

Tommy nodded and pretended to not be offended as they walked into the war room.

“Alright, ladies and gents, I’ve already had one meeting today so let’s make it quick. To our dismay, we are officially at war. We are now planning for this war. We’ve gotten word on how Dream is planning to fight. Let’s get to work.” 

Everyone made general noises of agreement.

“So, Dream says he wants to fight us personally. This means  _ just _ us. No armies, no nothing. King against king. And, I assume, a few of his personal men. So what trick could he pull on us and catch us off guard?”

Everyone threw random theories around, but Tommy spoke up. “So, I’ve been fortunate enough to personally fight that bastard. And he fights dirty. He plays many tricks. But the one defining factor is that he always does something totally unrelated that ends up benefiting him. If I were him, I’d plant some forces or tools around our walls. Maybe bombs to infiltrate with his army later on. While we’re fighting him personally, he’ll be sieging us. So we should maybe increase guards around the walls when we actually fight. We could also use them as backup in case one of us is seriously injured.” 

Wilbur nodded. “Good point. How many guards do we have? We don’t want to spread them thin.”

The conversation continued. Even though Tommy’s achievement wasn’t commented on as much as Tubbo’s, it was clear that he had earned respect, as they took his good suggestion and didn’t even question it. Both boys left their meetings feeling very accomplished. 

-_-_-

Later, Wilbur went down into the town square to make his speech. Fundy was staying with Niki all day, and managed to make it to the square just in time for the end.

“Although these facts may be disheartening to many, considering how these proceedings have occurred and the fact that we are springing this news on you all quite suddenly, I and the rest of my cabinet are doing everything within our power to resolve this peacefully with as little damages as possible. We ask that you are patient with us and in return we will do our very best to win this war for all of you. Thank you.” Wilbur noticed Fundy in the crowd after his speech and walked over to him. “Thanks for keeping care of him, Niki. I know my little champion was worried about me.” Fundy blushed, ducking his head. “Dad, it’s embarrassing!” Niki smiled, relief clear in her eyes. “No problem, Wil. So, war?” 

Wilbur’s expression soured. “Yes. You’ll probably be one of the people who will have to temporarily evacuate, although it breaks my heart to lose your pastries.”

Niki laughed, his joke putting her at ease. “Tell you what. You win the war, I’ll bake you all the pastries you want. Free.”

“Come now Niki, we can’t be ruining your income  _ and _ the economy!”

The happy banter eased many of the citizen’s hearts, as they heard the conversation in passing. Wilbur and Niki eventually parted ways around sundown, promising to catch up later when everything was resolved. 

Tommy and Tubbo were there to greet Fundy and Wilbur when they returned. All in all, it had been a very successful day, and they were feeling much less worried about the incoming war. In the castle so close and yet so far away, Dream and his cohorts were also feeling very confident. Only time could prove who was right. 


	22. Chapter 19

“Rise and shine, children!”

Tommy rolled over with a groan. “Twice in a week? I woke up early yesterday, Wilbur.”

“Not as early as I did.” Tubbo complained. 

“Please, you should be used to it by now. The only reason you aren’t is because you’re slackers. Anyway, your fighting tutor should be here soon. So get up and get ready.”

“Wilbur, you’re gonna make us train? We’re exhausted, leave us alone!” Tommy whined.

“Nope, not exhausted enough. You can’t forget that there’s a war coming, Tommy. An actual war. And people fight in wars. Physically. And you are nowhere near ready. SO,” Wilbur pulled Tommy’s blanket until he fell off the bed with a curse. “Get up.” Wilbur finished, flaunting out of the room. 

Tommy rubbed his elbow from where it hit the floor. “I bet he never does this to Fundy,” He groused.

Tubbo shrugged, already getting dressed. “Yeah, but I bet Fundy actually gets up.” 

“Whose side are you on?”

“The side of, you know, winning.”

“...Alright, touché.”

The boys were ready and in the training room in fifteen minutes, Tommy now complaining about the oatmeal on his shirt that Tubbo had flicked at him.

Their tutor walked in, a man who  **i kinda wanna put a character in but nobody was really on lmanbergs side at this point???** was very plain looking, but it was apparent that he was strong. 

“Alright, kids. This is pretty short notice, so you’d better not whine. We’re gonna be pushing your training pretty hard, so no slacking, even if your muscles fail. Got it?”

Tommy rolled his eyes, but nodded along with Tubbo’s enthusiastically bobbing head. 

“Then let’s get to work.”

-_-_-

Hours later, Tommy and Tubbo were tiredly sparring. They’d been working for so long, their arms were like rubber, barely parrying each other’s swings. 

“Come on, you’re trying to kill each other, not sway like pansies in the wind!” Their tutor shouted at them.

Tommy sighed but tightened his grip on his weapon, putting a bit more force into his swing. 

They went back and forth for a few minutes until Tommy disarmed Tubbo, stopping him with the point of his sword on Tubbo’s throat. Neither said anything, just panted, but Tommy’s eyes had a triumphant gleam to them. 

“Good enough. We can continue tomorrow.” The tutor turned his back on them and left the arena without another word. The two boys collapsed on the ground, breathing hard. 

“Just for the record, I won that,” Tommy gasped out between breaths. 

“You- did not- win that.” Tubbo wheezed. “It was 5 to 6 in my favor.”

Tommy let out a shaky laugh. “I guess I knocked you on the head too hard Tubbo, cause I totally beat you.”

“Lies.” 

Their tired banter was put to a pause by the sound of Wilbur’s footsteps. “I assume training went well?” 

Tommy shrugged. “I guess. I beat Tubbo.”   
“You did not!”

“I feel like I’m on fire, though. Please tell me there’s an ice bath or something for us.” Tommy pleaded.

Wilbur laughed. “No such luck. You can draw your own baths. I’m only here to make sure you’re still breathing and tell you there’s a war meeting tomorrow.”

“Are you kidding me?” Tommy indignantly yelled. “You’re working us to the bone! Give us a day off!”   
“It’s only been two days. Also, welcome to my world. This is what it’s like to be king.”

“Kill me now,” Tommy mumbled, standing up. Tubbo followed him soon after, and the boys wobbled painfully to the castle. 

-_-_-

Later that night, the boys had collapsed into bed, out before their heads touched the pillows. They were extremely sore, and would be so for the next few days. Wilbur had, indeed, worked them to the bone; and would do so for the entire week. And although Tommy would grouse, and Tubbo would play around, everyone felt the urgency to grow and prepare and plan before it was too late. Eret had become crucial to their war efforts, working just as hard in the war room and giving Wilbur suggestions when he got too tired to think. Wilbur had officially appointed him as his temporary right hand man, and personally asked him to join them in the incoming battle. Eret, of course, humbly accepted, relieved in knowing his job was safe. Evacuations were close to finished, the guards had longer shifts, and the day of reckoning drew nearer.

Then came the final night of rest. Fundy had evacuated the castle to be with Niki. Tubbo was dead asleep, and Tommy was laying in bed, drifting off but never really finding rest. Wilbur… Wilbur was talking to ‘himself’ again.

_ “This is a mistake. You know it is.” _

“I know, but we don’t have a choice!”   
_ “What if you just dissolved your nation?” _

“I can’t dissolve L’manberg though!”   
_ “You’re willing to waste lives over a war you can’t win?” _

“Who says we can’t?”   
_ “Everyone. Including your own men.” _

“They don’t… Tommy wouldn’t…”

_ “Even his blind faithfulness knows it’s futile.” _

“Even Tubbo?”

_ “Even Tubbo.”  _


	23. PLEASE READ - THANK YOU ALL <3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> pls read v important!

Hey! Taylor here. Meredith and myself would like to thank each and everyone one of your for clicking on our story. This is our first time doing something like this, and it was amazing! As of writing this we're close to 400 hits, have 21 Kudos, and 3 bookmarks!!! 

merediths note vv  
To all of our wonderful readers, or anyone who finds it and makes it this far, we are taking a break from the story. And we’re not going to lie, we’re probably not going to come back for a WHILE, if at all. Things have just gotten hectic, and in my personal opinion (Loser_Geek_Weebever) the story has gone a little dry. However, as a little going away gift, you all get the rest of what we’ve written, as well as our unrefined character list and ideas. Now, although we aren’t sure if we’ll ever revive this, there is a chance we might. So maybe keep an eye on it. Taze will be writing another fic (and Geek will help) so don’t despair! Geek may also begin to post stories (on her AO3 as well as Wattpad) so just keep an eye out. And again, this might not be goodbye forever. Thank you if you’ve made it this far!  
Again- this might not be a forever goodbye, but it’s going to be a while. Any chapters posted after this does not confirm that we’re back, so don’t be misled. Again, we’re sorry, but this is the plan for now. Thank you for reading! :)  
-Tazeartstudios and Loser_Geek_Weebever

This absolutely means the world. We apologize to those few who are actually invested in the story, it fucking sucks when you get into something and then its just abruptly abandoned. 

PLS DONT STEAL TY :)

Now, more importantly....  
we have a new fic in the w o r k s DUNDUNDUN......

Yes, it is still mcyt, but were gonna be focusing on the sleepy bois specifically. SBI poggers. When we get more done (because we literally started brainstorming n stuff today-) we'll give you an update!!!  
I wish I had anything to supply in the meantime, but I don't, except for some fun facts:  
-the google doc is 60 pages  
-somehow we accidentally copied an entire section of a chapter into a footnote on each page and idk what the fuck i did but boy is it a n n o y i n g.  
-its chaos

-thats about it

-you shoud check me out on twitch - twitch.tv/tazeverse :)

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks for reading! See you in the next chapter!


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